The River Wild

1994’s "The River Wild”, directed by Curtis Hanson.

Starring Meryl Streep, David Straitharn, John C. Reilly, Kevin Bacon, Joseph Mazzello, and Benjamin Bratt.

What is it about?

Streep stars here as a teacher, married to partially estranged workaholic architect (Straitharn). They have 1 adolescent son (Mazzello), and together decide to go on a white water rafting camping expedition. With plans to meet the maternal grandparents at the end of the their journey, Streep has enough knowledge of rowing and rafting survival techniques for the 3 of them- and the stage is set for a nice weekend of enjoying nature and perhaps patching up the relationship between Streep and Staitharn’s characters. However, the family meet up with a friendly duo of rafters (Reilly and Bacon), whom are very forwards, but increasingly suspicious in their actions. Before the family knows it, they are navigating through the rapids as hostages. Will they be able to survive both their captors and the river’s forces?

Why is it worth seeing?

I came into this film vaguely remembering the commercials from when it was released, and wasn’t sure if this was going to be vintage Streep or slumming Streep. The end results were somewhere in the middle. Streep can do anything, and she is perfectly capable as the do everything girl scout, able to convey expertise, innocence, and maternal instinct when needed. Straitharn’s character is a little less believable, as the fish out of water managerial workaholic who seems out of his element both spending time with his family, and in nature. Bacon’s performance is superb, as the charming but menacing criminal. Finally, the child actor, Mazzello, is a serious issue. Much like Jurassic Park before it, he plagues this film with his irritating presence. The script doesn’t help him either, as he bonds with the family’s captors because of their knowledge of Jane’s Addiction, while he has no idea what his father does for employment.

In “Wild”, Hansen does a good job of creating suspense from a relatively stagnant concept (Potential marketing: “It’s Speed on a Raft!”), but the script at times tells instead of just showing- and letting the audience make up it’s own mind. Overall, the movie has some absolutely lovely flora and fauna, and we end up cheering for the family to overcome their adversity and reconnect as a unit. At times, the drama can be easy to get swept up into, like a Class 5 rapid.

Rating:

3.5/5

Trailer: Click Here.